Color vision and learning in the monarch butterfly,Danaus plexippus(Nymphalidae)

Abstract

SUMMARYThe monarch butterfly, Danaus plexippus, is well known for its intimate association with milkweed plants and its incredible multigenerational trans-continental migrations. However, little is known about monarch butterflies' color perception or learning ability, despite the importance of visual information to butterfly behavior in the contexts of nectar foraging, host-plant location and mate recognition. We used both theoretical and experimental approaches to address basic questions about monarch color vision and learning ability. Color space modeling based on the three known spectral classes of photoreceptors present in the eye suggests that monarchs should not be able to discriminate between long wavelength colors without making use of a dark orange lateral filtering pigment distributed heterogeneously in the eye. In the context of nectar foraging, monarchs show strong innate preferences, rapidly learn to associate colors with sugar rewards and learn non-innately preferred colors as quickly and proficiently as they do innately preferred colors. Butterflies also demonstrate asymmetric confusion between specific pairs of colors, which is likely a function of stimulus brightness. Monarchs readily learn to associate a second color with reward, and in general, learning parameters do not vary with temporal sequence of training. In addition, monarchs have true color vision; that is, they can discriminate colors on the basis of wavelength, independent of intensity. Finally, behavioral trials confirm that monarchs do make use of lateral filtering pigments to enhance long-wavelength discrimination. Our results demonstrate that monarchs are proficient and flexible color learners; these capabilities should allow them to respond rapidly to changing nectar availabilities as they travel over migratory routes, across both space and time.Supplementary material available online at

Facial patterns in a tropical social wasp correlate with colony membership

“…Several studies have described spontaneous colour preferences in bees (Lunau 1990;Giurfa et al 1995;Chittka et al 2004;Dyer et al 2016), butterflies (Ilse 1928;Swihart and Swihart 1970;Weiss 1997;Kinoshita et al 1999;Kandori et al 2009;Blackiston et al 2011), moths (Kelber 1996;Goyret et al 2008), and hoverflies (Lunau and Wacht 1994). The aims of the present study were to explore a comparative approach with bees and to identify potential differences in spontaneous colour responses between temperate and tropical bees, comparing the responses of three social bee species that were tested under the same conditions.…”

“…Solitary insects without food stores are typically starved after eclosure, for example for up to 2 days in the monarch butterfly (e.g. Blackiston et al 2011). Finally, the brightness and colouration of the background on which stimuli are presented also plays a role, as it influences the adaptation state of receptors and the colour vision system, but can also potentially provide cues that could change the internal state of some insects, like those that use foliage as oviposition sites.…”

“…The number of colours offered and foraging experience, even without colour learning, could affect the outcomes of the test, and first experimental evidence has recently been provided. Blackiston et al (2011) reported that spontaneous colour preferences in the monarch butterfly Danaus plexippus were influenced by the combination of coloured stimuli presented during the tests. Orange was preferred in a six-colour array with yellow being chosen roughly equally to the red and blue stimuli.…”

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“…In the butterfly network node (flower) having more amounts of nectar will attract more and more butterflies by natural sensitivity [2,27] hence; it will increase the degree of the node (flower) because of that node has higher probability of nectar. The butterflies exchange the information not only by dancing, but also they have natural intelligence for sensing nectar through color, insect, chemical, sound and physical action [28][29][30][31][32], so it develops better communication network compared to others [18][19][20][21]. The formation of the "collective intelligence" in the butterfly network by these different types of communication systems between individual butterflies [24].…”

“…propagates with the time so in fewer time butterflies is able to choose several according to arrangement of degree of nodes, it selects search region decision making process butterfly interact with the substantially different sensory system [2,30]. So in case of butterfly the search somewhat becomes sequ area hence it takes less time compared to others [ where it lays egg .Butterflies don't make nest like bees or wasps, usually they live on same food source until it finds a new food source number of flight (iteration) with improvement in fitness of respective objective function.…”